EMBARRASSMENT: Arizona Cardinals EMBARRASSING Loss Leaves Little Hope for Rest of Season

EMBARRASSMENT: Arizona Cardinals EMBARRASSING Loss Leaves Little Hope for Rest of Season

The Arizona Cardinal loss to the Tennessee Titans may be one you cannot come back from. Or maybe it’s the last straw before the final straw. Let’s discuss. [Music] You are Locked on Cardinals, your daily Arizona Cardinals podcast, part of the locked on podcast network. Your team every day. Cardinals. Alex Clancy here. Uh, wow. Lots happened since the last Monday. Just another walk-off loss for the Arizona Cardinals. This time so much more fantastical, if that is even possible. Um, we’ve got a lot to talk about. And this isn’t going to be a fun show. This isn’t going to be a fun show. Uh, it’s going to be fun because me, you, you know, you know how we do it. But it’s not going to be fun. This episode is brought to you by Mazda. Like our players, we sweat every detail because when you make every move count, pulling off the unexpected is only the beginning. Stay tuned later for highlights of this week. This week’s moving the game forward. Mazda move and be moved. The Cardinals lose. If you’ve been under a rock for the last, you know, 18 hours or so. Uh yikes. Um this is how today’s show is going to go. What are the positives? There were a couple. I’ll talk about in the final segment doesn’t deserve to be talked out talked about until then. Nobody’s getting fired yet. Should they? I don’t know. Will they? No. Second segment. Entirety of it. Just about that. The Arizona Cardinals for a large portion portion of this season have played scared football. have played, let’s run the clock out and hope that the other team doesn’t remember that they can score points between now and then in football. We saw it in New Orleans. We saw it in Carolina. We saw it with and we saw it yesterday at home against Tennessee. Up 216 going into the fourth. Up 213 with 8 minutes left in the second quarter, which is the last time the Arizona Cardinals scored. I still can’t believe what I witnessed yesterday. I’ve been doing this a long time. I don’t say that as a flex. I say that is just a factual piece of information when talking about this team. I’ve never questioned my love for sports media until I did yesterday. I mean, you’re not getting rid of me, but it was one where it’s like, do I really need to do this? Like, it’s just one of those, you know, weird random thoughts you have in your head. The way they lost, the comedy of errors, and the collection of who done it moments makes me believe that we went from the clock ticking last week to the clock about to hit zeros, expire this week. And it’s a weird feeling to have. It’s a weird feeling to have. So, you know, I’m getting on social media getting just backlap. People are people are kind of excoriating the media like, “Well, how dare you talk people up? How dare you say anything’s going to be different than what it was?” First of all, that’s completely reactionary and very convenient for what we’ve witnessed up until this point. I said before the season started, if the Cardinals weren’t good, I’d feel duped. Because this time instead of, “Oh, it’ll be different because it’s a new year,” there were actual concrete physical things that happened that made this team better and more talented primarily on the defense, but there were actual physical things that happened, evidence, proof of concept with actual talent and not proof of concept just scheme wise like we saw when they rolled in in 2023. and there was no talent on the team, but it’s like, oh, you know what? When there’s talent on this team, that’s going to work. And it has for the most part on defense. And the most frustrating part is, especially for the two wins and then yesterday, is the offense looked fine for, you know, two quarters. They got out to this massive lead and then they just legitimately forgot how to play football again. And it’s like, fool me once, shame on you. Fool me a thousand times, shame on me. It the weird part is it looks different every time. The Carolina game, they scored three times in like four minutes of game play and then they don’t score again for the second half. After the first drive of the second half, you have a lead 15-13 against the 49ers. ugly game, but you have a lead with two minutes to go. Can’t get it done. Take off three quarters of the week four game against Seattle and then come back and tie the game with with, you know, less than 30 seconds left and still lose. And then up 213 with 8 minutes left in the second, 216 going into the fourth and you lose 22-21. It’s no longer an exception to the rule. It’s the rule. It’s not if, it’s when. This is the same old cardinal stuff that people have been talking about since their inception a thousand years ago. But why? Why does this keep happening? Is it coaching? Yeah. Is it the players not having a killer instinct on offense? Yeah. Is it predominantly Kyler Murray who’s the leader of that? Yeah. I just like it’s everybody’s fault. It’s everybody’s fault. And what do I say? The only thing that’s worse than having a problem is not knowing where the root of the problem is so it can be started to be fixed. So when you witnessed what was witnessable yesterday, it just it intensifies that issue. It’s everybody’s fault. It’s Jonathan Ganon’s fault for being the head coach of a team that this happens to every week. It seems every week. the first five weeks and you can’t even enjoy the wins because they were almost losses. The Cardinals could be five-0 or they could be 0 and five. But rational thought process would lend you to think 4- one is where they should be. Should have beat the 49ers and they should have beat Tennessee. The fact that they lost to the Titans is absolutely looney. It’s Looney Tunes that we’re having to have this conversation right now. I don’t even care about the numbers. I don’t even care. Like, the numbers don’t matter. The numbers do not matter. This is one of those games. It doesn’t matter if everybody was healthy. The Cardinals were losing this game. Like, it’s just one of those things that doesn’t lend to traditional conventional thought. the D Taylor Demerson interception and then rolling down and the ball fumbling around like like the Cardinals defensive backs were trying to use their elbows to to recover the ball and not their hands. It’s like a Charlie Chaplan movie. It’s like a silent comedy. I mean, being up 21-3 with eight minutes left in the second quarter, you were humming. Kyler Murray rushing touchdown. Humming. Michael Carter got in the end zone. Bam Knight got in the end zone. Boom. Humming. Humming. The defense couldn’t the the uh Titans offense couldn’t do anything. Humming. Oh, this is gonna be a 40 burger. And I’m like, put up 50. Go. This is the the game where you cleanse your pallet going into Indie next week. Go show yourselves that you can absolutely punish a team that has no business being in this game. And this is where we are. This is where we always are. And I officially feel duped. Nobody’s getting fired though. I’ll explain why next. This episode of Lockdown Cardinals is brought to you by Square. Um, your favorite neighborhood spots run on Square. There are certain businesses that make the neighborhood the neighborhood. And these are the places that become an extension of home. Whether it’s the sports bar dedicated to your team’s fan base, a spot with the best wings in town for game day, or that beloved local chain that’s been rooting in your that’s been rooting in your community for years. These businesses are what bring people together. When neighborhood businesses thrive, the whole neighborhood thrives. There’s a boatload of companies in Arizona that use Square. Uh Fresh Cuts Barberhop, uh Yummy Yummy Sushi is one of my favorites. Like I get Yummy Yummy a lot. It is delicious uh food. Uh Tacos and Munchies, uh Alicia Donuts. Like there’s so many that you can support in in, you know, the Phoenix area. Uh, Square is a proud partner of more than 4 million neighborhood businesses around the world. You can go to square.com/go/lockton NFL to learn more. But before you do, go support your favorite neighborhood spots. You’ll be happy you did. Square. See you in the neighborhood. Today’s episode of Lockdown Cardinals is also brought to you by Mazda. Uh, moving the game forward. Uh, for those who believe it’s not just about playing the games, it’s about redefining it. There are moments that do more than put points on the board. They move crowds, move culture, and keep moving the game forward. this week’s moment that moved the game forward. I mean, there’s one from the game, and it’s Marv’s contested catch over two defenders on an underthrown ball. Reached up, high pointed it, and ripped it away from the four hands of the two defensive players. Like, that’s two games in a row that Marv has gone up and make made a flashb memory play. He’s going to be fine. Okay, the rest of the offense may not be, but Marv is going to be fine and going to be very good for a very long time when he move. what follows you. When you follow what moves you, the unexpected is only the beginning. And just like there’s more to every highlight, there’s more to a Mazda vehicle. Mazda, move and be moved. Please go to the YouTube channel, search Lock Arizona Cardinals, hit that subscribe button, man. Uh record numbers for the instant reaction video last night. Record numbers for the Cardinal squad show immediately following it yesterday. Uh thanks for supporting me. Thanks for supporting the show. Um, you know, I’m just here to provide hopefully rational content for you more times than not. But, uh, I promise you that regardless of what is happening between the lines, I will be here for you and with you every day. Um, yuck. Just a collective yuck. Can we do that together? Hold hands. Instead of saying kumbaya, just sing yuck over and over and over again. Nobody’s getting fired, though. Yeah. Um, this is, as I’ve mentioned, I struggle with things, thinking about things, what what the right call is for certain things and what is the alternative is the thing I struggle with. So, you know, there’s couple I I’ve had I was having a bunch of interaction on social media yesterday and you know, a couple people said, which is right. It’s like, okay, so just because it’s scary to find out what the unknown is doesn’t mean it could be better than this. That’s right. I mean, that’s that’s right. that just because you know you don’t know what would be better than Kyler Murray that’s available that doesn’t mean there isn’t something that’s available that’s right same goes with coaching but with Drew Pating specifically I don’t think that these downfalls even though you need a Patsy you need a fall guy and I it was obvious I said before the season started if there was a fall guy it was going to be him um I don’t think the production collapse when they’re still throwing the ball is on Drew Petting 100%. I think it’s just a self-fulfilling prophecy for this offense that the bad will happen. It’s a it’s a it’s a it’s a stigma. It’s like a mindset that’s not on purpose like they’re not throwing games or something like that. It’s like uh oh, this is when things go bad and yesterday’s loss. Oh boy. That ain’t helping it at all. The Kyler Murray uh helmet fumble, great. The helmet fumble, fantastic. Um but again, the offense looked good for a quarter and a half and then they completely went to hard stop, anchor down, and it wasn’t like they just I mean they did when you could have salted the game the way you ran the ball three straight times, which was kind of a joke. um to a defense that was completely gassed at that point. Like this is this is the script of Arizona Cardinals games. Get out to a good start. Offense does nothing. Defense is on the field a lot. Defense gets tired. Defense gets worn down. Opposing team takes advantage of that and wins football game. So yeah, that last drive I just don’t we we see it every week. It’s like I’d much rather give Cam Ward three timeouts still and not have to burn him and the Cardinals just throw the ball three times. Like be aggressive, go end the game. And I think people were still a little shell shocked with the Tyler Locker recovery of the touchdown in the end zone at that point. It’s like the human brain is not supposed to be able to comprehend what’s happening right now. And they’re doing it in real time. Not excuse, not a reason, nothing. just probably what was going on. Nobody’s getting fired because that means you’re punting on the season. They’re two and three. I know that people don’t want to hear it, but it’s not like they’re 0 and five. Okay. One, I mean, if we’re going to speak in rational thought, which is completely foreign to us through five weeks, like, oh, let’s speak in rational thought. Well, what good is that going to do us? Because that’s not necessary because we’re speaking in a rational idiocracy of a world. But if you are going to, you know, take it aside, a little saliloquy if you may, and get into the rational world for a minute. They’re two and three and there’s a whole season ahead of you. But rational world as well. Where is the next win going to come from? Indie, Green Bay, Dallas, and they have Seattle and the 49ers. It’s like this could get ugly so quickly. But just because the Cardinals lost yesterday, like everybody thought they were going to, nobody thought that was gonna happen yesterday. So on the flip side, if they go to Indie and get a win, it’s like, all right, well that’s the Cardinals, of course. But Indie blew the doors off of Vegas yesterday, 40 to6. And I’m not saying the Raiders are I I don’t know. I I have no idea anymore about anything really. Like I put a lot of work in this off seasonason to make rational content based upon things that have actually happened and it’s all out the window. All of it, but nobody’s getting fired because you are absolutely punting on the season if you fire a head coach. And I don’t think Jonathan Gon deserves to be fired yet. I don’t necessarily think Drew Petting deser like you’re going to bring in a first-time play caller. This isn’t like a oh who cares, try it. No. The Cardinals offense looks beyond competent for like 30% of each game. You don’t know which 30% it’s going to be. You don’t know if it’s going to be the first quarter and a half. You don’t know if it’s going to be the fourth quarter only. Like, but it’s there. You can’t fire, you know, fire everybody. You can’t. What are you going to do for the rest of the season? This team isn’t this isn’t going to be a fire sale thing. They’ve got good core pieces here. Maybe do it at the end of the year, do a hard reset, you keep the young talent, you keep Josh Sweat, also you keep, you know, um the offensive line, you add a piece or whatever, you draft an offensive lineman. Well, what a shocker. The offensive line is struggling. Oh, I wonder who told you they should have drafted an offensive lineman at 16. And that’s not fair to Walter Nolan because he hasn’t played yet. It looks really bad right now. And I will tell you and I want all of your ears right now. There is a chance for it to look so much worse. There is a chance for it to look Armageddon worse. And that chance went from 10% going into yesterday to 70%. Within the course of a 60-minute football game, I don’t know how you have confidence in this team moving forward. And for the, you know, for the chirpers who are like, “Oh, I saw this coming the whole time.” No, you didn’t. No, you didn’t. You’re like somebody who saw the ending of a movie, spoiled it for somebody else who hadn’t seen it, and thought you were smart because you watched the whole movie first. That doesn’t count. You can’t be reactionary like that. Oh, I told you. I’ve been watching this team a long time. I told you this was going to happen. No, you didn’t. No, you didn’t. Nobody saw this version of two and three. Nobody saw it. So going into next week, which we’ve got plenty of time to talk about, going into next week, which is this week, the time has like really come super early, but the time is here where you can’t fire anybody now, but if they lose convincingly in Indie, then you What’s the difference? One more game. What’s the difference? Proof that yesterday wasn’t a fluke. And that is a very, very scary ground to be in because that puts so many things on the table that we hadn’t expected to had discuss before the by-week. Lockdown Cardinals, your team every day. Yes. Yes, there are positives. I’ll hit them next. This episode of Lockdown Cardinals is brought to you by our friends at FanDuel right now. New new customers, listen. New customers can bet just $5 and get $300 in bonus bets if you win. That’s right. Pick a bet, put down five bucks, and if it hits, you’ll unlock $300 in bonus bets to use across the app. You take Tennessee plus eight and a half. You take Tennessee yesterday on the money line with extra juice to win. Well, you cashed out, man. I’ll tell you what, that’s something that I 100% did not see coming. I am 100% not putting my condo on the market. Just for I’m just gonna say that in a live read also. Uh, so what are you waiting for, man? New customers, again, put down $5. If that bet wins, you get $300 in bonus bets used across the app. Visit fanduel.com to download the FanDuel app today and get started. Please go to the YouTube channel, search lock in Arizona Cardinal, hit that subscribe button, man. You know the drill. I will be here with you regardless of what happens. Even if we’re talking about the draft in week 10. How did we get here? How did we get here with this team? I just Yeah, I don’t know. This is It’s a lot. Uh there were a couple positives. Two positives. Marv when he got the looks like he’s he’s not the problem. He’s not the problem. Um the two catches from the last two weeks that should erase all doubt about the dog and the ability in him. Like that catch was wizardry. That was magician stuff. It was an underthrown ball. It should have got intercepted by two defenders and he sandwiched between the two of them. Came up with the ball and almost a touchdown compounded with the high point touchdown catch from last week over a couple defenders. Marvel looked good. Like you just got to get him more touches. He had almost 100 yards. Like I cannot believe he only had five targets. 10 targets every game. Starting in Indie throwing the ball. I don’t care if Kyler Murray gets intercepted three times. Force the ball to Marvin Harrison Jr. and let the kid go. Let him make some plays. Same for Trey McBride. It’s just a joke. I just I don’t understand why at this point he’s getting five targets a game. Throw Get him 12. Kendrick Morren had like 14 targets on Thursday night. Get him the damn ball. Throw the ball. I don’t care if Ky intercepts at this point. If you’re going to make mistakes, make him huge. The season’s on the line. But that’s a positive. Marv is going to be fine. I don’t know who the quarterback’s going to be that’s throwing in the ball. I don’t know who the offensive coordinator is that’s going to be calling the plays. I don’t know who the head coach is going to be who’s going to be overseeing all of it, but get Marv the ball stat. Um, Will Hernandez, Kevin Beach. It’s like somebody told you this from the beginning of the off season when Will Hernandez Oh, well, I mean, obviously they didn’t sign him until late, but I’m like, will Hernandez will be back when he’s healthy? Put him out there. Nobody is going to be better than him on this roster. Isaiah Adams ain’t it. It’s like somebody told you. It’s like I talk about these things six months ahead of time. I get a lot of crap for him and then I’m right when the time comes. Surprise, surprise. The Cardinals offense was incredibly efficient, especially on the ground when Will Hernandez was out there. Three drives with him out there, 21 points. When he wasn’t out there, zero points, one yard per play. That was, I think, in the first half. It was a Teao Macki stat. Surprise, surprise. Kelvin Beichum sprung Amari De Marcado for that long run. And I guess we can talk about that at the end. That’s not a positive, but I’m going to I’m going to leave you with some zen at the end. I’m going to I’m going to um John Stewart you at the end. It’s incredible what happens when you put out veteran offensive linemen who know what the hell they’re doing, who can take pressure, yell to Frold, so he doesn’t have to be a superhero. Unbelievable. Why is this surprising? This isn’t a pat me on the back situation. It’s a this was so obvious situation. Why is anybody Why is anybody surprised that this is where we are with that? Now, I got to talk about the Mario De Marcato thing. Um I saw the clip this morning of Jonathan Ginon absolutely roasting him. Um not a huge fan of him putting his hands on like he didn’t like hit him or anything. He slapped his his uh his midsection with, you know, where he’s patted and stuff, but like I’ve never seen Jonathan Yan in that. I rate. Um uh first off, tell your friends. If you want to look smart, tell your friends. This is my It’s October 6. This is one of my two smart things I’m going to say this this month. So, you ready? And here we go. The Amari de Marcato run and fumble is ex is the Arizona Cardinals 2025 season. You get to the finish line and you fumble with the ball before you hit pay dirt. Carter should be four and one like like without sweating they should be four and one. You’re sitting at two and three going on the road. Two of your toughest games back to back Indian home against Green Bay before the buy. Um, Jonathan Ganon being that demonstrative and that I rate I think that was the first moment he realized his job could be in jeopardy. And it’s like maybe he didn’t realize, maybe it’s not realized, maybe the realization became like real that he could be looking for a job at the end of the season if not before. And it’s crazy how quickly that’s happened. But as I said about Cliff, and this is not a knock on Cliff. As I said about Cliff, if the same things are happening over and over and over again, that’s a coaching thing. They were happening over and over and over again with Cliff. They’re happening over and over again with Jonathan Ganon. the fact that you can’t even enjoy the wins because they were so stressful because you couldn’t hold on to a multi-score lead thrice and then one of them ended up being a loss yesterday. Cardinals had a lead in San Francisco. The defense is not the issue. The defense is gassed after every game that the Cardinals have a lead because the offense cannot take care of business. There’s a lot more to unpack here. I’ll break down the numbers tomorrow. I think this was a much more overarching big picture day. Um, so I’ll do that tomorrow. Remember, without you there is no me. I’ll talk to you then.

In this hard-hitting episode, Alex Clancy dissects the Arizona Cardinals’ devastating defeat against the Tennessee Titans, exposing a troubling pattern of “scared football” and squandered leads that’s plaguing the team. Clancy pulls no punches as he breaks down Jonathan Gannon’s questionable coaching decisions, Drew Petzing’s conservative offensive strategy, and Kyler Murray’s role in the team’s ongoing struggles.

The discussion dives deep into the heart of the Cardinals’ issues, exploring potential staff changes that might be necessary to right the ship. Alex analyzes the upcoming challenges against the Indianapolis Colts and debates whether the team can turn things around before it’s too late.

Despite the gloomy outlook, the episode highlights some bright spots, including Marvin Harrison Jr.’s standout performance, offering a glimmer of hope for Cardinals fans.

Listeners can expect an unfiltered, no-holds-barred analysis of the Cardinals’ current situation, complete with passionate commentary on what needs to change for the team to salvage their season. This episode is a must-listen for die-hard Cardinals supporters and NFL enthusiasts alike, providing insider insights and expert opinions on the team’s path forward.

Tune in for a rollercoaster ride of emotions as Alex navigates the highs and lows of the Cardinals’ season, leaving no stone unturned in his quest to understand what’s gone wrong and what it will take to fix it. Let’s discuss.

The Best Daily Arizona Cardinals Podcast. Host Alex Clancy (@ClancysCorner) take an unbiased approach covering the biggest Cards stories.

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